2008: On the Horizon

ByBuckGB
PublishedJanuary 14, 2008

RPGCodex presents us with an editorial looking ahead to 2008, a fairly comprehensive list of (PC) RPGs for 2008.

With its release date originally set to January, the Neverwinter Nights 2 adventure pack Mysteries of Westgate might be the first title to hit virtual store shelves this year, even if it falls prey to a small delay. Made by Ossian Studios (known for the Darkness over Daggerford NWN module) and featuring a story about the player’s character trying to get rid of a cursed mask, the adventure pack promises 15 hours of highly-replayable ((probably the most replayable D&D CRPG since Baldur’s Gate 2), if you trust the devs) urban RPG adventure with a lot of freedom, conversation checks and difficult combat. There’s no official word of the second official expansion to NWN2, but my guess is that – with the looming release of DnD 4th Ed. – if it’s going to happen, it has to happen fast. There are some rumors of the expansion being set in Chult, which would open fascinating dinosaur-hunting opportunities. Purgatorio, a NWN2 mod by Rogue Dao studios (the first part of a planned trilogy of modules set in the Planescape setting) has transformed into a huge undertaking (as evidenced e.g. by this video), which if successful will permit us to return to pre-Faction War Sigil, something many of us RPG fans were dreaming of. All in all, we can count on a sizable portion of DnD 3.5 roleplaying goodness in 2008.
After more than a decade, we will have another game based on the German PnP RPG system “The Dark Eye” – now in real time, though. The title in question, Drakensang by Radon Labs, should be released sometime during the first quarter of 2008. Supposed to be a fantasy RPG “ala Baldur’s Gate”, it won’t be a sequel to the original trilogy by Attic Entertainment – so I guess you may finally format the floppies with your endgame saves from Shadows over Riva.
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Similarly, Obsidian has been really silent about their Alien RPG, announced back in 2006. Many RPG fans anticipate the title simply because Chris Avellone of Planescape: Torment fame is its Lead Creative Designer. Josh Sawyer stated in April 2007 that the project was “many months” off – and even if he didn’t say “years”, we don’t expect to be rushing to stores for it anytime soon; especially if Space Siege (also published by Sega) is coming this Fall.
It also doesn’t seem probable that we’ll see a PC Gothic game this year. Not much is known about the new Piranha Bytes title, save for a few wallpapers and a piece of music. And the fact that it’s going to take place on a volcanic island. All that we can look forward to in 2008 is that Gothic 3 may get more patches which may be a damn good thing if they manage to finally overhaul the combat system, as unlikely as it sounds, though.
Those of you who thought the penal colony in Gothic was OK but could be drastically improved by introducing lasers and forced gay sex should be thrilled to know that the English translation of Dungeon Cleaners is in the works. And the twisted Russians are already preparing a sequel.

BuckGB

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